Colon Cancer

Skin and colon cancer

08/15/2007

Question:

Hello. I have a question as to what happens to the outer skin such as, hands, arms, and nose. My father has colon cancer and goes to treatment once a week and now he has bumps on his hands and arms that start out red, then form into a white pus filled then when popped or dried up looks like a scab with a real bad sunburn around it, why is that? I hope that i have described this to you well enough to give me some kind of insite as to what is happening. Thank you very very much.

Answer:

It sounds as though your father's colon cancer is being treated with Erbitux (cetuximab). One of the side effects of this chemotherapy is a skin rash, just as you have described. There are medications to help with the rash, so you or your father should talk to his oncologist about possible treatments.

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